HOLT, Fla., Dec. 26, 2020—December is the deadliest month yet for the pandemic in the United States.

According to information from The COVID Tracking Project, more COVID-19-related deaths in the United States have occurred in the first three weeks of December than in any other month since the pandemic began.

The second-highest month for COVID-related deaths was in April, just before many states shut down, including Florida after the governor’s statewide stay-at-home order for May.

In Okaloosa County an additional eight virus-related deaths were added since Thursday, bringing the county’s total to 223.

The Florida Department of Health did not collect virus numbers Christmas Day, so the state’s additional 17,042 cases appears high, but it accounts for two days worth of data.

The period of time between Christmas and New Year is expected to have spotty overall reporting as fewer people line up for tests and fewer people are available to process those results, according to the Tracking Project. The result will be a surge in numbers after the first of the year as holiday backlogs are dumped into databases across the country.

First-of-the-year numbers will also spike in late January as results of Christmas travel cases begin to appear.

Florida is one of five states that accounted for 40 percent of all new cases in the past seven days, according to data by the project. Arizona, California, Tennessee and Texas are the other four.

In Okaloosa County, Holt added two new cases since Thursday and is one case away from breaking 100 total cases.

Baker added eight during the past two days; Laurel Hill added seven.  Crestview’s numbers increased by 97 since Thursday.

Okaloosa County*

• Fort Walton Beach 3,535
• Crestview 3,181
• Niceville 1,918
• Destin 1,261
• Mary Esther 588
• Shalimar 571
• Baker 362
• Valparaiso 174
• Eglin Air Force Base 163
• Laurel Hill 171
• Holt 99
• Hurlburt Field 64
• Cinco Bayou 39
• Choctaw Beach 7
• Milligan 2
• Duke Field 2
• Navarre 1
• Florala 1
• Defuniak Springs 1

Around the area

• Milton 5,225
• Pace 806
• Bagdad 25
• Jay 259
• Paxton 14
• Defuniak Springs 1,490

*FROM FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH COVID-19 DATABASE